Report flags $10b boost to dental care

The federal government is refusing to commit to a significant boost to dental health funding in the May budget despite its own expert advisory council suggesting $10 billion is needed over the next four years.

The Gillard government this week released the final report of the National Advisory Council on Dental Health.

It states that the long-term goal should be universal and equitable access to dental care for all Australians.

But the report acknowledges that such a Denticare scheme would be prohibitively costly at the moment, so "as a first step ... the council has focused on improving access for children and lower income adults".

The council put forward a number of options, including one that would cost $10.1 billion over four years from 2012/13.

It would involve the states and territories taking primary responsibility for children up to the age of 18 and the commonwealth handling care for adults who hold a concession card.

The council suggests lower income adults could be given a capped benefit entitlement building on the existing Medicare chronic disease dental scheme.

Labor has twice tried but failed to scrap the former Howard government scheme - which allows Australians to access up to $4250 for major dental work - and replace it with targeted public treatment for pensioners and the disadvantaged.

Health Minister Tanya Plibersek on Tuesday refused to say whether the government would be able to find $10 billion over four years to fund the council's new proposal.

"I'm not going to pre-empt anything that may or may not be in the budget," Ms Plibersek told the ABC.

"(But) what I can say is that the government is very dedicated to making improvements in the dental health of Australians over time."

Ms Plibersek said the government needed to take some time to study the council's report and consider how best to improve dental healthcare.

Labor promised in May 2011 that "significant reforms to dental health will be a priority for the 2012/13 budget".

The government first vowed to consider greater investment in dental care as part of the 2010 deal in which the Australian Greens helped deliver Julia Gillard minority government.

The Greens want the government to phase in a universal Denticare scheme over five years, with it costing $5 billion annually by 2016/17.

But health spokesman Richard Di Natale on Tuesday said the council's suggestion regarding a "first step" was welcome because it would provide free treatment to 12 million Australians.

"The Greens are thrilled with the recommendations outlined in the report," Senator Di Natale told reporters, adding it was "too important to be lost or buried".

"At the end of four years we could have 12 million Australians being able to access Medicare-funded dentistry."

Opposition health spokesman Peter Dutton is worried that if children and low-income Australians are given free dental treatment they could drop their private health insurance.

"There are 3.5 million Australians who are on incomes of less than $35,000 a year who have private health insurance," he told ABC Radio.

"If those people leave private health insurance to go into a public scheme what will the pressure be? Where are the dentists going to come from?"